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Download speed reduced considerably...

vimesuk
Grafter
Posts: 98
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎18-03-2013

Download speed reduced considerably...

Hello
I have had my FTTC connection since March 25th and it has always been stable and very consistent with speeds. I am connected at 67.8Mb and it has been like that consistently.
Downloading has always been at 8.5MBps from Usenet.
Looking at my speeds today I see...

rather than...

The above is consistent and has been for a little while. My connection stats at the router show an uptime of over 20 days, so stability seems fine. I'm not too sure how to provide any further information from that....

Downloading from Usenet seems slow and downloading test files from....
http://www.thinkbroadband.com/download.html
shows around 350KB sec rather than up to 8MB sec.
This from BT....

direct link to above...
http://files.upit.me/1368643143.jpg

General browsing seems sluggish as well.
I am using the same wired connection to the supplied router and I have tried another PC, which is directly connected via another Ethernet port (both CAT 5E) with the same results.
What has happened....?



13 REPLIES 13
Anotherone
Champion
Posts: 19,107
Thanks: 457
Fixes: 21
Registered: ‎31-08-2007

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

The BT IP Profile for the line is fine, so your connection to the Cab looks OK. Check your Current Line speed (Login required) which should match the BT IP Profile.
chrispurvey
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 5,369
Fixes: 1
Registered: ‎13-07-2012

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

Hi there,
I've checked over your connection and can't see any obvious cause for this, could you try a PPPoE connection when you see your speeds drop to see if there's any difference?
vimesuk
Grafter
Posts: 98
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎18-03-2013

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

I tried to do that, with the help of a support rep, but Windows 8 kept reporting a 651 (?) error. The rep asked me to rename the ppoe connection to Plusnet, which I did, but still the error remains and thus it would not connect.
However what I think could be the problem is the fact that my line is so stable and that I never touch either the router or the modem. This Technicolor router seems to get "sticky" after it has a connection running for twenty plus days or so. It even gives me problems when trying to access it via the web interface, wired or wireless. This typically means that it needs to be switched off for a few seconds and then back on again.
Doing that I then find that I can access the router without it being lethargically slow, it is responsive when looking at the stats etc. Also my line speed seems to have gone back somewhat to normal - albeit still a little slower.
So....
I used to use this same router when I had a BE ADSL connection (prior to Plusnet) and it also had to be switched on and off every two weeks or so. I guess this will need to happen for this router as well - is that typical....?
The Wifi has improved as well. Even though my line (20 days plus of stability) seems fine the router itself seems less than reliable in terms of "clogging up" and running slow until it is switched off for a while and then I am fine again with both the connection and the wifi.
Is it possible to ever get around the issue of connecting via a ppoe connection with the issue that I noted, the rep wanted to move on from that after the renaming of the connection did not resolve it...?
[Moderator's note by Dick (Strat):  Full quote of preceding post removed, as per Forum Rule]

chrispurvey
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Plusnet Alumni (retired)
Posts: 5,369
Fixes: 1
Registered: ‎13-07-2012

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

It doesn't seem right about the router running slow, it might be worth us looking at replacing it.
Regarding the PPPoE connection, it might be worth taking a look here and then try the PPPoE connection again.
vimesuk
Grafter
Posts: 98
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎18-03-2013

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

Thanks for the phone call and the intention of sending me a replacement router however my usual line profile (since March 25th) has been.....


full sized image...
http://files.upit.me/1368643143.jpg
67.8mb without any stability issues at all.
This morning I now find that my line profile has changed to....

full size image....
http://files.upit.me/1368945427.jpg
which has now gone down to 57Mb for my download. Speeds are really slow and yet, again, I have had no disconnection since we spoke on the phone and thus the line has been stable.
Why has my line profile changed so much and my speeds dropped so considerably...? This happened at 8:06am this morning, as I was downloading at the time from my PC and so the sudden drop in speed.
Speaking with support unfortunately only confirmed that as long as the speed is within the line profile of 16Mb to 57Mb then it is acceptable. For me to drop 10Mb is not really an acceptable amount, coupled with the slower download speed.


Anotherone
Champion
Posts: 19,107
Thanks: 457
Fixes: 21
Registered: ‎31-08-2007

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

That sounds like a scripted response form CSC.
You didn't post back what your Current Line speed (Login required) was on the 15th. Do you know what it was, and what it is now?
BTW you can add an attachment to a post, if you didn't use the Reply button, when you've typed the message, click on Preview, then below the box you'll see the + Additional Options and Attachments..., click on the plus then Browse to where you saved the .jpg  This is better than relying on external servers where responses can be slow and images can get deleted.
Also with the BTw Speedtest you can just Copy and Paste the result, don't really need the graphics  Wink
vimesuk
Grafter
Posts: 98
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎18-03-2013

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

^^^ Thanks for the above advice, regarding images Smiley
My current line speed from that link has never changed....

Telephone number:
  xxxxxxxxxxx
Phone exchange:
   ASHTON
Estimated line speed:
   57Mb (Accurate to within +/- 1Mbit) - Checked on 2013-03-18 16:07:31
Current line speed:
   67.8 Mb
it has always been like that since the 25th March.
My replacement router arrived yesterday from Plusnet and now I have fitted that.
For some reason my speed has gone back up to just less than 59Mbps - but it was just short of 68Mbps all of the time.
It may read a little petty but I kinda liked the 68Mbps as it seemed to max out what I could possible get and that was consistent since the 25th March and now I am just a little less than 59Mbps. I suppose I was a little irritated to be informed that as long as my speed is between 16 and 57 (used to be 68) then it will be acceptable.
w23
Pro
Posts: 6,347
Thanks: 96
Fixes: 4
Registered: ‎08-01-2008

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

Hi vimesuk,
I'd recommend editing your phone number out of the post above.
Call me 'w23'
At any given moment in the universe many things happen. Coincidence is a matter of how close these events are in space, time and relationship.
Opinions expressed in forum posts are those of the poster, others may have different views.
Anotherone
Champion
Posts: 19,107
Thanks: 457
Fixes: 21
Registered: ‎31-08-2007

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

Can you run  the BTw Performance test (ignore the red preamble except make sure no other programs are using the Internet) and go to the Diagnostic test again and check the current BT IP profile for the Downstream.
vimesuk
Grafter
Posts: 98
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎18-03-2013

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

Thanks - removed my phone number from the above post.
The BT IP profile is...
Additional Information:
IP Profile for your line is - 57.74 Mbps
prior to yesterday, and since the 25th March it was....
Additional Information:
IP Profile for your line is - 67.82 Mbps
The upstream profile has not changed at all...
Additional Information:
Upstream Rate IP profile on your line is - 20 Mbps
but I used to get 18+Mbps and now I get 14Mbps.
Anotherone
Champion
Posts: 19,107
Thanks: 457
Fixes: 21
Registered: ‎31-08-2007

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

It looks as though there's been some sort of noise/interference that's caused a resync at a lower speed. Have you had any thunderstorms or power dips at all? Can you hear/have you heard any crackling or other noises on the line when using the phone? Have you had any problems with incoming or outgoing calls?
You certainly haven't had any luck, firstly a dodgy router and now this. Did the power to the Modem get interrupted at any time?
vimesuk
Grafter
Posts: 98
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎18-03-2013

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

Hopefully the new router will resolve the issues that I had experienced with the old one. I just need to pop the old one in the post now.
There is no noise on the line and the line test done mid last week showed that it was fine.
At around 8:05am yesterday the speed dropped as I was downloading and I then ran a speedtest as it remained quite low. The speedtest was done and the results showed above with the speed being reduced and the profile of the line being adjusted to 57.74.
Prior to me disconnecting the router to fit the new one it has been connected for over twenty days without a line drop, as shown with the attached jpg.
I am not sure why the line profiling has changed from 68 to 57 with the stability of the line, as well as the previous consistent download speeds.
I do remember that the line was estimated to give me 57Mb, or there about, and since March 25th I was on 68Mb and it was perfectly stable and running fine. After the speed reduction, and I noticed the new profile speed, I assume that I am now only getting what was predicted. Maybe the starts of an FTTC connection can, in some circumstances, perform better before interference etc within a "busy" cabinet causes a certain diminishing of that speed..?
 
Anotherone
Champion
Posts: 19,107
Thanks: 457
Fixes: 21
Registered: ‎31-08-2007

Re: Download speed reduced considerably...

It's certainly the case that you can start your connection at a higher speed than it may be possible to sustain in the longer term, especially if there were few connected to your Cab at the time you started.
I've noticed quite a few posts from users that have had a reduction in speed due to a temporary issue and DLM has eventually upped the speed again - but not all to the same initial speed. So this could be a case of being patient and as long as the connection is stable and you don't reboot the Modem (which it will see as a drop) then hopefully it will up the speed again.